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It was the Panthers superstar in mid-range marvel himself in Jeremy Smith returning for the first time since 2024 that looked unstoppable early in a high scoring opening term. Young Sabre guard Luke Pfitzner with no Sam Daly and Jack Turnbull made his debut as the Concordia College product got to work early with the opening scores from the charity stripe. With the Panthers rolling out COE product Rio Bruton and Ukrainian forward Yevgen Sakhniuk – it was another source in a small surprise but his 17 reserve point average coming into the season in Jonty Smith showed his form in the first. Jonty Smith entered the contest three triples in the opening term to give the Panthers the lead 26-32 after one.
The second continued to be the Jeremy Smith show as he showed out from beyond the arc and inside the paint taking on all and sundry. Off the back of a season with the Cairns Taipans as a development player – second year returnee Lloyd McVeigh also showed his range as he and Smith kept the scoreboard ticking over. Playing his former side though Jarryd Hoppo had a point to prove and did so with three triples of his own in the term before icing his fourth to close out the second term with the Sabres taking a 52-46 lead. Jeremy Smith already with 19 points to the half and looking impossible to contain.
An adjustment by stand-in coach Paul Rigoni (with Jaklb Dorricott away with 36ers duties) was needed at the half on Smith and he got from that the “big body” of Seb Griffin (Eight points, four rebounds, three assists and steals) and Rigoni as the Sabres forced the Panthers to beat them a different way. With a Tasmanian Jackjumper former development player in their midst Josh “Big TOM” Tomasi got rolling with paint attack, a long three ball Rigoni continued to motor in the second half as well with continuous contributions to the scoreboard but standing in their way was the long makes of Lloyd and Sakniuk with a slam to give the Panthers the lead back 76-77 with one to play.
Starved of opportunity Joel Spear put some down from deep to energise the Sabres into action but McVeigh continued to hit back at the home side. The momentum even in the tightness shifted with a sensational tip-in off some offensive glass work from Tomasi.
The turning point of the match however came with 2:37 left as Smith drove to the basket and slipped with Griffin stealing the ball – Smith reaching and making contact with the leg of Griffin then Rigoni and Smith having words to each other. The situation was assessed with an unsportsmanlike and technical foul on Smith and technical on Rigoni with Smith fouled out of the game.
With the mid-range marvel out of the game the Panthers turned to McVeigh to keep the scoreboard ticking over and he did with makes and free throws. Wanting to complete the comeback after missing all of last NBL1 Central season Jacob Rigoni rose to the occasion with clutch free throws and an important layup with only five seconds remaining. The ball game was in the hands of McVeigh but his shot steered right as the Sabres took a thrilling win over their rival.
Jacob Rigoni was the player of the game returning to the league with a 29 point & 10 rebound surging effort supported by Tomasi with 21 points & 12 rebounds. Hoppo brought it against his former side with four triples in his 15 points, three assists and rebounds while Spear silently shot his way to a return of 17 points, six assists, three rebounds and steals.
McVeigh nearly had the Panthers into OT with a huge 17 points in the second half to finish with 22 points and six rebounds backed up by an impressive debut from Rio Bruton adding 18 points with four triples and three steals. Jeremy Smith finished with 23 points at a highly efficient 75 percent, seven assists and three steals with Jonty Smith gaining a career high 12 points & five rebounds. Koby Moir also made his debut and had an up and down first match with Seven points, five rebounds, four assists and rebounds and looks an exciting top player to watch in 2026 with a bit of spark for South.
The numbers that mattered
- The Sabres defeated the Panthers for the first time in three meetings snapping a streak since 2024
- Both teams couldn’t miss throughout the night shooting at over 46 percent from the field including three points range with 22 triples made
- The Sabres smashed the glass with 18 offensive rebounds led by Tomasi with six of them
- Jeremy Smith had 19 points in the first half but was held to just four points with just three attempts in the second half
The Three Takeaways
- Rigoni has not missed a beat in his recovery
- The Panthers size on the glass is a concern
- The experience on the floor of Spear, Hoppo and Rigoni was the defining factor
STURT SABRES 96 (RIGONI 29, TOMASI 21, SPEAR 17, HOPPO 15, GRIFFIN 8)
SOUTH ADELAIDE PANTHERS 93 (MCVEIGH 24, JE SMITH 23, BRUTON 18, JO SMITH 12, SAKNIUK 9, MOIR 7)
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